Windshield wiper



Aug. 8, 1933. A. BULL ET AL 1,92%070 WINDSHIELD WIPER Filed Jan. 26, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. ARTHUR ABULL WALTER AWOOD am/1' fwd/Q A TTORNEYS,

Patented Au g..8, .1933, f t L UNIFTEDSTATES P TENT 1 OFFICE], A

Wok,- assignors to Handy Governor Corporation, Detroit, Mich; a Corporation of Michigan Application. January 26, 1931. Serial No. 511,226 reclaims, (or. v -14 This invention relates to a windshield wiper, comprises two main units, namely,v the motor and moreparticularly, to a windshield wiper of unit ea-nd the unitary worm and driven asthe electrically operated and reciprocating ful-l sembly 5. The motor 4 is preferably or the low vision type. 'It is an object of thisinvention to voltage type of electric motor which comes 5 producean'electrically'operated windshield-wiper a distinct and separate unit from the unit 60 in which the motor is a separate unit from the e 111.1115 5 d h motor are D S'E unitary worm and driven assembly. This pernecte'd as they are assembled to the header bar 2'.

, v mits the motor and the unitary worm-and driven The driven unit is contained within a tubular bl t b m f t d "separately nd sheet metal casing 6 one end of which fits over' .10 operatfve1y" connected upon the assembly of the h b ing m m T h vins nn flange 65 windshield wiper to the'v'ehicle body. V V 3 which iszsecured' toythem'otor by the screws 9 It is" an object of thisiriv ention tofproduce a The 'other; end of the tube 6 fixed theretd reciprocatingwindshieldw l et n which the opthe bracket lO wh-ich in turn is secured to the erating frictionof theunitis'very greatly-mim header bar 2. The bracket end of the, tube 6 is 15. mized' by virtue of the small friction ccntact'areaclosed by b e c u e 11- I between the reciprocating elementsof the wind; Since it is an objectof this invention to reshield wiperand theguide therefor. duce the' fric tion between the sliding members is an object of '-isinvention to produce andv'the' guides therefor to a minimumgto this a reciprocating windshield wiper inwhich the end the-tubular members has running e 20. reciprocating elements-areguided tensio'ned Wise thereof a'pair of guide rods 12.v 'Eaeh; of; 7

guides f V V these'ro'ds I2 is" fi xed at one end. in the bearing It is a furtherfobjeetof this invention -tdpro- 7, as at 13, and the other end of therodprojects duce a reciprocating "windshield wiperhaving a through asuitabl'e opening in the closure: 11; and rslipping clutch whichpermits-the absorption of has. mounted thereon the: washer 14- and the the-inertia'of the driving and driven: units-when nut 15-. It will thus be seen that by turning the ourrentis'i reversed and slippage between the the nuts 15'- '.the. guide rods can betensione'd; drivingand dri-ven units in case the resistance fhe guide rods12 have slidably'rnountedtheree of the driven unit is greaterfthanl the driving upon thejspaced carrier'slide. members: 16 and t u I 11 I l 17?. The openings: in the-slide members 16 and .1 0 Referring" to the drawings: a 1 17 through which the. guide rods 12 pass are Fig. 1 is an elevation showing the windshield provided with suitable antifriction. bushings I81 wiperoperatively associated. the windshield, Since the guide rods 12. can be tensioned to in'-- of a motor vehicle. Q I i. v crease their.rigidity'andsincei the area ofcon- Fig's. 2 and 3 show tf e windshield wiper blades tact between the guide rods '12 andi the recipro e 3.5 at the-extreme opposite ends of' their strokes eating slides '16 and--17 is relatively small, the

with an overlapping wiping action at the center. frictionbetween these reciprocating parts is reof thewindshie'l'd'. i M V 1 I duced to aminimum. 'Among the advantages of Fi'gJ- iis alongitudinal section or the: Wiper the tension rods 12. are "these:- First, the small dnwngmechamsmf; a i

. i surface area-of the rod' which: has a sliding con- 40 Fig. -5 is"atop pl'a' View ofzthe' wiper. driving 'tact with the slides 16' and 17,.redi1cesthefri0- mechanism; i I tion of the: relatively sliding Darts very mate- Eigz. fiiisa section aion'gthefline 6- -6 of Fig. 4. riallyg seoondly; thefa'ct that these. rods l2 can Fig.7 is a; section alon'g the line 7-41 o'f Fi g. ,4; be tension'ed gives them a rigidity and-flstraight- L Fig. S- isa section along the line 8'8 oi Fig 4; inessthat will prevent crimping between the rod Referring more particularly to. the drawings, 's-ufficient'ly to take care of commercial tolerances there is shown a. fragment or a portion of a vein the slidesxand guides and associated mechahicle. body having alwmasmsm-i andfa header l'liSlll' -tt) permit smooth" and fieereoiprocation bar 2, upon which} is mounted the Windshield of the driven mechanism.

V 00 wiper. generally designatedfi; The windshield The slide members 16 and 1'7 are held in wiper 3 is of the electrically driven wdrm-operfi xed': spaced relation by means of the-rods-ZO and meal 331151 p procau'ng type; Since it isanob- 21 which are fixed at each end tothe slides 16 and ject of this'invent'iori'to simplifyandexpedite 127 "respectively: The tube 6' has hired therein bothflthe initial installatioxnand'the repair of andcentrally thereof the bearing member 22. 55- the windshield wiper-therefore: ,the I assembly The-bearing member 22risprovided-with suitable Fig. 9 is a section alongthe line 99 of Fig.4 and slides 16 and 17, and yet the rods will give 100 holes to permit the passage-therethrough of the endsbent as at 32 and 33 (Fig. 5).

tensioned rods 12 and the spacer rods and 21, the openings for the spaoerrods are provided with suitable anti-friction bushings 23..

The spacer rod '21 has pivotally mounted thereon the wiper blade holders 24 and 25. The pivoted blade holders 24 and 25 project through the slot 26 which extends longitudinally of the bottom of the tube 6. -The pivoted blade holders 24 and 25 have associated therewith the coil torsion springs 27 and 28, the springs 27 and" 28 each having one 'end extending transversely through the spacer rod21, as at. 29. The other ends of the coil springs}? and 28 are bent laterally across t e blade holders 24 and 25,-as

. at 30 and 31, respectively, The transverse-por tionsSO and 31 of the coil springs have their The bent end 32 of the spring 28 prevents the holder 24 from moving. to the rightalong the rod 21. M

The members 24 and 25' are identical and each'is' provided with a suitable square socket "34 which receives thesquarebla'de support rod,

35, which in turn supports the rubber window wiping blade'36.

. notch 37 which coincides with an opening 38 i in the socket portion of the support 24. 7 Hence,

The rod '35 is provided with a when-'therod is slid into the socket 34'the transverse arm 30 of the coil, spring 28 engages the same in the notch 3'? through the'opening ,38 in the holder 24 to retain the wiper blade removably in position. Hence it will be seen that the arms of thetorsion coil springs 27 and 28 at all times apply a yielding torsional pressure against the said holders to yieldably hold-the rubber wiper blades 36 against the windshield -l, and serve as a spring -latoh .for securing the window wiper blade rods 35in the sockets '34. i

3 .It will be seen that by properly positioning the bladeiholders 24"and 25 along the spacerrod 21 that an overlapping action'oi the window Wiping blades ,36;oan be obtained. vThis overlapping is brought out in Figs.'2 and 3. The left J1 extreme right hand'position in Fig. 2, and in hand'window wiper blade "36 is shownin its Fig. 3 the right hand window wiper blade 36 is shown. in its extreme left hand nQSition. Thus,

v along the vertical center line of the windshield 1 the wiping action ofv the wiper blades overlaps andthus insures a continuous rather than intermittent wiped area on the windshield This overlapping of the wiper blades 36' is efiectedby adjustinglthe blade holders 24 and 25'along the rod 21. It will be seen thatithe holder :25 is positionedadjacentithe slide, l'l' so that as the slide 'l7.reoiprocates to'theleit the holder25 will notiquite' enterthe slot 57 in the central bearing 22, whereas the holder 24 is spaced outwardly from the slidelfi a sufficient distanc'e to permit the holder24 to pass through andbeyond the recess 57in the bearing" 22 when the slide 16 reaches the extreme right handend of its stroke to insure an overlapping wiping action. I

The slides 16 and 1'7 and associated window wiping parts are arranged to be reciprocated by a single'worm 40. The worm 40 has one'end journaled in the bearing support 22, as at, 41, and'the other end is suitably supported within {the hearing? by means of the ball race 42, the end of the shaft .40 is likewise provided with suitable splines 43' for engaging complementa splines on the shaft ofthe motor 4. 1

Since but a single worm 40 is used forrecipro- ,cating the slides 16 and 1'7 and associated mechanism,-the worm 40 must be alternately rotated in one direction and then in the reverse direction. To this end the tube 6 has mounted thereupon a suitable switch generally designated 44 which is alternately operated by the slides 16 and 17 to reverse the flow of the current and consequently reverse the rotation of the motor and associated worm 40 to reciprocate the wip- -ing-mechanism. The specific type of switch bers 45 and 46 are internally threaded 'to inter.-'

fit with the threads of the worm 40 and are yieldably held apart by the coil spring 49. The tension of the coil spring 49 efiects a yielding frictional ,clutching engagement between the outer faces of the members 45 and 46 and the brackets'47 and 48, as at 50 and 51. In other words,- the coil spring 49 iii-conjunction with the clutchracing members45 and 46 cooperate with the brackets (island 48 to form a slipping clutch. :This slipping clutch serves to absorb the inertia of the driving and driven parts whenever the current is, reversed to reverse the motor and whenever the resistance of the slides 16'and associated wiping mechanism becomes greater than the friction. betweenv the clutch facing members 45 and 46 and brackets'4'7 and 48.

The guide rods 12 have threaded thereupon between slides 16 and 17 and the central bearing member 22 the. coil springs 52.

7 Thus, in operation, assuming turning tfi effect'moveznent of the slides .16 and 17 and associated wiping mechanism to the right: the'worm through'its threaded engagement with the threaded openings in the clutch members 45 andk46, through their frictional engagement with the brackets 47 and 48, effects a movement, to the rightof the Wiping mechanism, provided the jrictional clutching engagethe worm 40 is 1 ment between the'members 45 and 46 and the brackets 47 andf48u is greater than theresistance ofiered by the slides 16 andl'i; and associated wiping mechanism. In this case. the members 45. and 46 do not rotate with the worm 40 but remain stationary, in theirijournals in the slide 16. As the slides '16 and 17 and associated mechanism approach ,the end of their stroke to the right, the two springs 52 tothe left of the central stationary bar'22 are compressed by the -movement tothe right of the slidellfi. Hence, at this timethe slip-clutch, owing-to the increased resistance of the coil springs 52 which are being compressed, begins to slip to absorb-the torque. of ,the. motor and the driving worm just prior to the termination of the rightward stroke of the slides 16; 17 and associated mechanism. The reversing switch is then thrown and mama-. 1 reversed. At this time the in- Y ertia of the drivenmechanism causesthe clutch to temporarily slipwhile the ,sliding driven mechanism is getting'under wayain its leftward movement. fln overcoming'the inertia of the driven member the slip clutch is assisted by the expansion of the coil springs 52.

A further advantage of this slip clutch is that in case the'wiper blades meet an obstruction on the windshield, such as ice, or are obstructed in some other way while the wiper is in operation, the clutch will slip and. thereby prevent injury tothe wiper blades'and to the driving and driven parts. i

What we claim is: 1 1. A windshield wiper comprising in combination an electric. motor and associated. driving worm; reciprocating driven mechanism, mechanism for "reversing the current and the rotation of the motor and associated worm, and a slip connection between the driving worm and the driven mechanism whereby the inertia of the driving 'and driven mechanism is absorbed when the current is reversed.

2. A windshield wiper comprising in combination an electric motor, a switch for reversingthe flow of current to the motor, a worm operatively connected'with the motor, a reciprocating slide, a slipping clutch for transmitting the drivingtorque of the worm to the slide to reciprocate the same and to absorb the inertia of the'moving members when the switch'is' actuated to reverse the flow of the current.

3. A windshield'wiper comprising in-combination reversible driving mechanism including a frictional engagement with the reciprocating driven mechanism and a threaded engagement with the worm to permit slippage between the yieldable member and driven mechanism to absorb the inertia of'the same when the driving mechanism is reversed.

4. A windshield wiper comprising in combination a reversible driving mechanism including a worm, a reciprocating slide, a plurality of members threaded upon the said worm and having a yielding frictional contactwith the. re-

ciprocating slide whereby the said members rotate with the said worm and slidably engage the said reciprocating member to absorb the inertia of thedriving and driven members when the driving mechanism is reversed.

5.'A windshield wiper comprising in combination reversible driving mechanism including a worm, a reciprocating slide, a guide for the said slide, a pair of internally threaded sleeves threaded on the'said worm and journaled in-the said slide, a pair of members fixed to the said slide, spring means for effecting a yielding frictional engagement between the said threaded 'sleeves and said pair of members whereby the inertia of the driving and'driven parts is absorbed when the driving mechanism is reversed.

resilient means positioned at either endof the,

said guide means arranged to be compressed during. the termination of the one stroke to abstroke of the'reciprocating mechanism to assist is reversed.

the slip clutch to transmit the driving torque, to the driven member. f

7. In a windshield wiper, a driving mechanism including a worm, a driven mechanism including aslide, a guide rod for the said slide, a slip clutch carried bythe slide member, and a spring positioned between the slide and the end of the guide rod arranged to be compressed at the termination of the stroke of the said driven mechanism, and to expand to assist the slip clutch to transmit the driving torque to the driven member during the initial reverse movement of the said driving mechanism.

8. A windshield wiper comprising in combination a reversible driving mechanism including a .worm, a reciprocating driven mechanism, a slip clutch positioned between the driving worm and the driven mechanism and adapted to reciprocate with the driven mechanism, the slip clutch serving to absorb the inertia of the driving and driven mechanism when the driving mechanism 9. A windshield wiper comprising in-combinaa I tion a reversible driving mechanism including a worm, a reciprocating driven mechanism, a slip clutch comprising a pair of members each having a clutch face, yieldable means for'holding' the clutch faces in engagement, one of the said members being fixed to the said driven mecha-'.

nism and the other of said members being threaded onto. the said screw whereby said clutch reciprocates with the driven mechanism the driving worm to the driven mechanism.

11. In a windshield wiper the combination of a driving mechanism including a worm, a reciprocating driven mechanism and a slip clutch arranged to reciprocate with the driven mechanism, the said clutch including a part fixed to the driven member and another part threaded on the worm.

' 12. In a windshield wiperthe. combination with a driving mechanism including a worm, of a reciprocating driven mechanism and a slip clutch arranged to reciprocate with the driven -1nechanism, the' said slip clutch comprising a pair-of members each having a clutch face, one of the said members being fixed to the driven mechanism and the other of said members being -journa1ed in the driven member and threaded upon the worm, and resilient means acting upon the said members for maintaining the faces in clutching engagement.

13. A windshield wiper comprising a casing, a slide having a plurality of openings reciprocable .clutch within said casing, a pair of tensionable guide rods extending lengthwise of and within the said casing and through the openings in the said slide, the said slide being slidably supported sole- 1y by the said rods throughout a portion of its travel'and out-of contact with the said casing,.

and means for driving the said slide back and forth within the said casing upon the said tensionable guide rods.

ARTHUR A. BULL. WALTER A. WOOD. 

